Forgiveness
by scarletchidori
Summary: Post- battle against Kimimaro (Sasuke Recovery Mission). "It's not on you, Gaara. I have forgiven you a long time ago".


**This one-shot was inspired by this fanart: post/160387455683/heres-a-thing-rock-lee-is-a-saint-bonus#notes**

**Also huge thank you to Stariastic for proofreading my one-shot.**

"You need to change those bandages", Tsunade-sama says. "Also, you need to take your medicine, you and I both know how important it is and by the way ,never drink sake again, all right?"  
"Okay", I say with a little smile while Gaara helps me sit on the bed. "I apologize but my friends needed me..."  
"I don't want to lecture you", she respond with a smile. "I just want to make sure you take care of yourself."

"Oh.. okay."

"You need help?"  
"No, thank you Tsunade-sama", I say.  
She nods and smiles again before leaving me alone with Gaara. I begin to untie the bandages on my arm, the cream that Tsunade gave me is resting on the bedside table. It is annoying to feel the skin so dry under the fingers, the pain is tolerable now, the cream only helps my skin to not become too much dry.  
I hear Gaara hold his breath.  
"Gaara?", I say . "Are you okay? Are you hurt?"

He takes my hand in his and strokes my dry skin with his thumb, I look at him in confusion.

"Gaara? Is everything okay? Please, talk to me".

"I'm sorry", he whispers "I'm so sorry".

When his sand had wrapped my leg and my arm I didn't know what to think, I was scared but not that much. Probably I thought that no matter how much he wanted to hurt me, he would never do something that could put my life in danger. But when he clenched his hand in a fist whispering 'sand burial' I knew that something would happen, atrocious pain exploded in both my arm and my leg, I felt every tiny bone break under the pressure of the sand. In the brief moment I was still conscious I thought that it would be better if he killed me instead of breaking me, the pain would have been more tolerable.

"No one had ever survived", he says "I never cared about them or how much afraid they felt when they were wrapped in my sand. On the other hand I knew they wouldn't suffer but you… I'm sorry. Forgive me, please forgive me"

I think about how the scars may appear in his eyes, how my dry skin must feel under his fingertips. I know Gaara wasn't exactly himself, I think that he was so consumed with hatred that I'm sure he would have killed me had Gai-sensei not stopped him.  
"Don't worry", I answer him.

"I could have killed you", he whispers "I wanted to kill you"

I put my hand on his, giving him a smile. "It's not on you, Gaara. I have forgiven you a long time ago".

"It is on me. I hurted you, I crushed you, who would forgive something like that?".

"Naruto told me… a couple of things about you. I had already forgiven you, but what he said made me realize something. You were hurt, you were alone, you needed to fill that immense void with the only thing you ever knew: pain"  
"Please I need to say it. Please let me say it"

"All right".

"I'm so sorry for what I've done to you. I will never be able to forgive myself for the pain I put you through… I'm so sorry".

"I forgive you, but you already know that, don't you?"

"But-"

"You already suffered enough in your life, you don't need to carry the weight of the world on your shoulders. Isn't it time you do the forgiving?" I ask with a smile on my lips.

"I guess so", he replies still keeping his gaze on our hands before letting go, as if touching my skin had burned him.

"Look at me, Gaara", I say. "Please, look at me".

He looks up at me with great sadness in his eyes. Perhaps it's because of that look in his eyes, that immense guilt and sadness, that I find myself wrapping my arms around him, hugging him tightly.

"You don't need to worry about me, Gaara. I'm fine, better than fine. I can still be a ninja, sure it wasn't easy and the operation was painful and risky. But I'm here, after fighting for the first time after what happened, I'm alive and you know why?"  
"No", he whispers  
"Kimimaro would have killed me if it wasn't for you. I'm alive because you were there. Your _sand_ saved me".

I stare at the wall with wide eyes when I feel Gaara's arms around me, I can feel his hesitation and it strikes me that perhaps this is the first time someone is hugging him. The fact that he is allowing me to comfort him is everything to me.

"Thank you", he whispers.


End file.
